New Delhi: The Supreme Court Monday said it would direct the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to comply with an Orissa High Court order requiring changes to the model consent form for the generation of Automated Permanent Academic Account Registry (APAAR) IDs, giving parents the option to refuse consent or opt out of the scheme. The APAAR scheme, launched by the Ministry of Education under the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, assigns every student a unique, lifelong 12-digit identification number that serves as a digital repository for academic records, including marksheets, degrees and co-curricular achievements.
A bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana was hearing a plea filed by the parents of four students challenging the validity of the APAAR ID scheme for students on the ground that it compelled them to obtain Aadhaar IDs. The top court said that since the Centre has not challenged the High Court’s December 2025 judgement, it would direct the CBSE to implement the ruling nationwide. “We will direct the CBSE to implement this judgement on a pan-India basis, as the High Court order has been accepted. We are directing the CBSE to examine the issues as well,” the bench said. It said a formal order would be uploaded later. The court also indicated that it would ask the CBSE to address concerns relating to consent and data protection raised by the petitioners. Senior advocate Indira Jaising, appearing for the petitioners, said that children were being effectively compelled to enrol under a non-statutory scheme despite the government’s description of APAAR as voluntary.
She said that while APAAR is projected as optional, it is linked to Aadhaar, making Aadhaar enrolment a practical prerequisite for obtaining an APAAR ID. Referring to the 2019 Aadhaar judgement in the KS Puttaswamy case, she said that children cannot be compelled to obtain Aadhaar and that making APAAR necessary for examinations indirectly violates that principle. “The right to education is a constitutional right. Asking a child to obtain Aadhaar and APAAR to appear in examinations is against the Constitution,” the senior lawyer said. She further said that the implementation of the scheme failed to comply with the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act, 2023, particularly with regard to informed consent, withdrawal of consent and protection of students’ personal data. Jaising said that the existing consent form was in the nature of a standard contract, offering no meaningful opportunity to refuse consent or opt out before enrolment. She urged the bench to direct the CBSE and schools to ensure strict compliance with Section 6 of the DPDP Act while obtaining parental consent.
The senior lawyer also highlighted concerns over long-term storage of children’s educational records, submitting that individuals should retain the “right to be forgotten” and withdraw consent. The CJI, however, expressed reservations about the broader challenge to the scheme, saying that its objective was to create a unique academic identity for every student and improve educational administration.
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